Twenty New Abusers Exposed in New York Following the Filing of 52 Lawsuits

By Zach Hiner
SNAP
June 16, 2020

https://www.snapnetwork.org/twenty_new_abusers_exposed_new_york_following_filing_52_lawsuits_jun20

52 lawsuits were filed against the Diocese of Albany on Monday, and thanks to those lawsuits the names of twenty new abusers have been made public. We applaud these survivors for coming forward and know that children and the vulnerable will be safer because of these filings.

Notably, of the new names of abusers revealed by these lawsuits, seven of them are nuns. This means that 10% of all publicly identified abusers in Albany are nuns. This helps highlight an often-ignored part of the clergy abuse scandal and brings public attention to the fact that sexual abuse is not just a priest issue, but an institutional issue. As more and more windows are opened nationwide, more and more reports about abuse by nuns are coming out and we believe that it is time that bishops publicly address the issue of abuse by nuns.

This story is yet another example that windows are critical to getting hidden information out into the public. Informed communities are safer communities and the more that parishioners, parents and the public are aware of these crimes, the better able we are to protect children and the vulnerable from abuse. Due to COVID-19, New York’s window has been extended to August 2021 and we hope that this story will encourage other survivors who have yet to come forward to stand up, make a report to police, and continue on their path towards justice and healing.